Graffiti at Mohamed Mahmoud

One experiences different levels of excitement whenever he decides to go on an adventure. First, the excitement he gets when he comes up with the idea and plans ahead. Then, the excitement he feels before he goes to bed the night before it. Then there’s the excitement he experiences as he wakes up and realizes that he is actually doing it. Finally, the rush of adrenaline he feels travelling his body as he leaves home and realizes that it is actually happening. I have experienced all these levels of excitement from the moment I decided to wander Mohamed Mahmoud Street till this moment on. I still cannot contain my excitement as I am writing this to you.

I have recently been introduced to the Instagram account of Downtown Cairo, which has opened my eyes to the hidden beauty of Downtown. I have come to realize that there are places in Downtown that are worth visiting; one of which is Mohamed Mahmoud Street. I have zero knowledge when it comes to history and politics so do not judge me when I tell you this; I had no idea about the existence of the 2011 Egyptian Revolution’s graffiti until recently. I also couldn’t recall that that was the famous Mohamed Mahmoud Street until I’ve been reminded so. So boring story short, Downtown Cairo’s photos brought my attention to the murals there and I decided to go see for myself.

Earlier today around 8:30 am, we reached Mohamed Mahmoud Street. It was slightly sunny and calm. I think the residents there are used to people taking photos of the murals. No one minded us. There was a photo shoot taking place next to us. Anyway, the graffiti we stumbled upon were mainly on the walls of the AUC Greek Campus. You’ll either find one mural standing alone or many crossing over each other. Some were cheerful, colorful and hopeful while others were dark and depressing. Some were obviously noticed while others were beautifully hidden. Some narrated their story right away while others left you thinking. The following are photos of the graffiti we found:

I cannot decipher this.

They didn’t finish coloring it in.

The best thing about this mini adventure was that we didn’t know where exactly the graffiti were. We just walked down the street and searched for them. We were hunting graffiti, haha. One of the great moments of this hunt was whenever we found a well-hidden graffiti; it was like finding an egg in an Easter Egg Hunt. It was fun and exciting. My favorite hidden graffiti is this one:

I cannot really read what is written… I think it has something to do with some of the murals being cleared from the walls. The graffiti itself looks hopeful in some way; there is a bird, the word “Dream”, a colorful t-shirt and hopeful look. This is by far my favorite graffiti of all; it is so full of positivity in my opinion.

Planning an adventure is one thing while putting it into effect is a whole other thing. This mini adventure is definitely one of my 2016 highlights. It even inspired me to do more of these mini adventures more often this summer. Let us make these mini adventures a thing by using the hashtag #OMNonfoot. So if you know any cool places for me to visit and wander around, please let me know. I am not done wandering Downtown, yet. There are a few places there I’d like to go to so stay tuned for that. Cheers, until next adventure!

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